Internet radio-stream providers and Web 2.0 portal operators are not strong competitors. Media researchers Arbitron and Edison Media Research indicate the opposite: online radio and social networks have a strong connection and share users. The overlap opens new opportunities for internet advertising. “Such effects are attributable to changed media-use behavior. Portals such as Last.fm at least show that this is not contradictory,” said Christoph Salzig, spokesperson for Germany’s Federal Association for the Digital Economy.
The researchers estimate that internet radio is heard by around 33 million Americans over the age of 12, an increase of roughly four million users from the previous year. Nearly one quarter, or 24%, of Americans over 12 have a profile on Web 2.0 communities such as MySpace or Facebook. Among online-radio listeners, 63% also use at least one social network, a considerably above-average share. “Hopefully this has a positive effect on the online advertising market. If synergies arise here, the industry can reach target groups from both sides,” Salzig said.
“Social networking quite clearly is not used to create self-contained communities,” said Arbitron Senior Analyst Diane Williams. She described web-radio listeners as power users. One third visit their Web 2.0 accounts at least once a day. “Online-radio listeners are one and a half times more likely than average Americans to create a profile on social-networking sites,” Williams said. Changed media use associated with new online media primarily affects younger people. “For the advertising industry, users’ tendency to organize all media consumption and leisure activity through the internet is extremely interesting,” Salzig added.